i wonder how cheap can china BD player be? has Akira launch it's BD player?IMO, i've tested cheap china DVD player with more expensive branded DVD player. there is visible image quaity difference. so, it's not worth to get cheap china players. but there's sth good about china players....can accept many types of "ahem" and "scratchy" disc and not very sensitive.

Better go for Panny BD60.Good PQ and otai-otai have discuss about this player before.Panny also got positive review instead of SONY S-60.Both I believe can decode all HD audio formats to PCM as well as Bitstreaming them out to your AVR if your AVR capable to support DTSMA/DDTru-HD.I will grab it soon

PS3 cheaper if we compare what PS3 capable to do.. not just can play BD..the idea is...PS3 price RM1299...split to can play BD RM300, as PC rm400, can play Game RM300, can play DVD/CD&ect RM300picture quality also good , easy to get firmware....so PS3 better than other normal player....

PS3 cheaper if we compare what PS3 capable to do.. not just can play BD..the idea is...PS3 price RM1299...split to can play BD RM300, as PC rm400, can play Game RM300, can play DVD/CD&ect RM300picture quality also good , easy to get firmware....so PS3 better than other normal player....

PS3 cheaper if we compare what PS3 capable to do.. not just can play BD..the idea is...PS3 price RM1299...split to can play BD RM300, as PC rm400, can play Game RM300, can play DVD/CD&ect RM300picture quality also good , easy to get firmware....so PS3 better than other normal player....

think about it...

PC??not even near PC also...alot format not supported.. e.g. MKV, RMVB. need remux here and there...so mafan..no everyone want to play game..DVD/CD, any BD player can do that...dont see why need extra RM300 there..are you saying other BD player no firmware update available?

Was the PC Fair and the Philips booth was throwing out BD Players for cheap. I got the Philips BDP2500 for RM499. Seems like a no brainer (even though the Philips brand value isn't much). Could play all the discs I have and some 'tricky' Bluray discs.

hilips BDP2500 for RM499 is a very good deal, not just playing BD. DVD, can also use USB to play media files, but of course the media playing function is not as good as those good media players but overall, it is really a good buy considering its features and capabilities. another good choice is Samsung P1600, has the same thing as this philips, can view youtube too, support wifi - but can only use its own adapter but it is a good for nothing thing as the samsung adapter is very very expensive.

hilips BDP2500 for RM499 is a very good deal, not just playing BD. DVD, can also use USB to play media files, but of course the media playing function is not as good as those good media players but overall, it is really a good buy considering its features and capabilities. another good choice is Samsung P1600, has the same thing as this philips, can view youtube too, support wifi - but can only use its own adapter but it is a good for nothing thing as the samsung adapter is very very expensive.

Yeah, nice deal I agree. Its cheap enough to think of the consequences hahaha! By the way, the USB connection is only meant for firmware upgrades. You can't play files through it. Only the higher ends would do that. Today at PC Fair, they also showcased their high end BD player and selling for RM799. Damn nice pricing!

But since I only needed a player to play BD content, so RM499 model would do just fine for me. I don't need the Live Content feature.

1st choice was oppo bdp-83 but dont have enough money. 2nd choice was the china player BD + media player kingmax bdc-300. end up i bought a second hand ps3 ( sacd capable). wished dune launched earlier..gah!

ps3 advantage : -dvd upscaling is good if not excellent.-bundled with HDD (well not that big, 60,80,120 to 250gb)-wireless ready and flv playable too.-can play avi, divx, m2ts etc.-can stream mkv through application. (some people say this is disadvantage)-continous firmware update..albeit sony took out OtherOS

ps3 disadvantage :-you have to take care your ps3 lens. avoid pirated dvd. buy ori.-you have to take care of the heat.-remote?-fewer picture setting?

if u want bd/dvd/media player(bdiso etc) - dune. if i have 2k now definitely ill order one.

if u want bd/dvd/media player(no bdiso only m2ts)/game - ps3.

sorry if i left dedicated bd player out, last 2 year ps3 pawn all except the really high end ones if i am not mistaken.

1st choice was oppo bdp-83 but dont have enough money. 2nd choice was the china player BD + media player kingmax bdc-300. end up i bought a second hand ps3 ( sacd capable). wished dune launched earlier..gah!

ps3 advantage : -dvd upscaling is good if not excellent.-bundled with HDD (well not that big, 60,80,120 to 250gb)-wireless ready and flv playable too.-can play avi, divx, m2ts etc.-can stream mkv through application. (some people say this is disadvantage)-continous firmware update..albeit sony took out OtherOS

ps3 disadvantage :-you have to take care your ps3 lens. avoid pirated dvd. buy ori.-you have to take care of the heat.-remote?-fewer picture setting?

if u want bd/dvd/media player(bdiso etc) - dune. if i have 2k now definitely ill order one.

if u want bd/dvd/media player(no bdiso only m2ts)/game - ps3.

sorry if i left dedicated bd player out, last 2 year ps3 pawn all except the really high end ones if i am not mistaken.

Was the PC Fair and the Philips booth was throwing out BD Players for cheap. I got the Philips BDP2500 for RM499. Seems like a no brainer (even though the Philips brand value isn't much). Could play all the discs I have and some 'tricky' Bluray discs.

hrm talking about cheap bluray players, i saw one in singapore, LG for SGD 149 ... it has the usb playback media file thing too.... was really tempted to buy... but lazy to bring it back, if you guys ever take plane, can claim 7% tax... so yeah... it works up to around rm300+ for a bd player from LG lol.... not bad ey? and for rm500, you can get Sony BD player + wifi ready thing (can browse youtube etc lol) ....

Agree,bluray players are cheaper outside Malaysia...only thing is that the warranty.if anything goes wrong,need to send back to Singapore/Australia/UK [wherever item is purchased]

Browser menu on Philips BDP 3000 is acceptable for me,compared to crappy menu on Cornell HDMI-Upscale DVD Player.Only thing is that the USB port is at the back,but for BDP3100 USB port now in front of the player.

Bought an AVATAR Bluray from SPEEDY Video,satisfied with the picture quality [1080p] and sound quality [DTS] produce by the player.

Wonder wether HBO HD channel on Astro Byond has the same picture quality with BluRay movie...?Anybody care to share...?

Agree,bluray players are cheaper outside Malaysia...only thing is that the warranty.if anything goes wrong,need to send back to Singapore/Australia/UK [wherever item is purchased]

Browser menu on Philips BDP 3000 is acceptable for me,compared to crappy menu on Cornell HDMI-Upscale DVD Player.Only thing is that the USB port is at the back,but for BDP3100 USB port now in front of the player.

Bought an AVATAR Bluray from SPEEDY Video,satisfied with the picture quality [1080p] and sound quality [DTS] produce by the player.

Wonder wether HBO HD channel on Astro Byond has the same picture quality with BluRay movie...?Anybody care to share...?

support n fully support two different thing rite?we wait n see..maybe i am wrong

Hmm.. they're always very vague with these things, eh?Yea.. I guess we gotta wait and see what gives...

I thought it would be Full HD 3D since it already comes with a built-in BD player but then... does Full HD 3D require a special lens for the BD player or is it just software and it still uses the same standard BD lens?

On a side note, 3D (as in wearing those silly glasses) games would interesting...

Hmm.. they're always very vague with these things, eh?Yea.. I guess we gotta wait and see what gives...

I thought it would be Full HD 3D since it already comes with a built-in BD player but then... does Full HD 3D require a special lens for the BD player or is it just software and it still uses the same standard BD lens?

On a side note, 3D (as in wearing those silly glasses) games would interesting...

heard need v1.4 hdmi..but current PS3 is v1.3v hdmi...that y i doubt bout fully support..or 1.4 is just a gimmick

anyway there is a few game in 3d already...old tech 3d...e.g. batman AA

heard need v1.4 hdmi..but current PS3 is v1.3v hdmi...that y i doubt bout fully support..or 1.4 is just a gimmick

HDMI 1.4 is not a gimmick. But the state of HDMI with regards to 3D is rather confusing.

According to HDMI Founder's site, HDMI cables are now sorted with descriptions: Standard, Standard with Ethernet, Automotive, High Speed and High Speed with Ethernet. So you won't find HDMI 1.4 cables being sold.

And according to HDGuru.com, HDMI 1.3 has two categories. Category 1 will handle a minimum 2.25Gbps while Category 2 will handle up to 10.2 Gbps. Therefore to do 3D, you need a Category 2 cable and a HDMI 1.3 device that supports it.

I believe that the PS3 (at least the PS3 Slim) has the HDMI 1.3 port that can output 10.2Gbps; I've watched and played with a demo PS3 in 3D. It may not have HDMI High Speed+Ethernet but that's not a requirement for 3D FHD.

QUOTE

anyway there is a few game in 3d already...old tech 3d...e.g. batman AA

With the last PS3 firmware 3.31, you could already play in 3D. And it has been more than a week since SCEA released four demos and three full downloadable games that are playable in 3D. They are MLB 10 The Show (demo), Pain (full), Super Stardust (demo and full), Motorstorm Pacific Rift (demo) and WipeOut HD (demo and full).

I was told by salesman that Philips Bluray player capable to play any bluray region.Hence,I purposedly bought "The Matrix" as at the back cover of the case stated as a Region B.

So it seem that it does'nt matter what the back cover stated about Region wether it is A,B or C...as long as it is stated in http://bluray.liesinc.net/index.php?region=b as a region free titled,so its safe enough to buy...correct ?

I was told by salesman that Philips Bluray player capable to play any bluray region.Hence,I purposedly bought "The Matrix" as at the back cover of the case stated as a Region B.

So it seem that it does'nt matter what the back cover stated about Region wether it is A,B or C...as long as it is stated in http://bluray.liesinc.net/index.php?region=b as a region free titled,so its safe enough to buy...correct ?

AFAIK .. d philips bdp sold here is not a region free player..Oso even in my oppo bdp.. its not load n play where region locked ttls r concerned, u still nid to change de region status b 4 loadin a locked disc or u stil get d 'tis player cannot play tis disc becos of diff region' msg..

I was told by salesman that Philips Bluray player capable to play any bluray region.Hence,I purposedly bought "The Matrix" as at the back cover of the case stated as a Region B.

So it seem that it does'nt matter what the back cover stated about Region wether it is A,B or C...as long as it is stated in http://bluray.liesinc.net/index.php?region=b as a region free titled,so its safe enough to buy...correct ?

I was told by salesman that Philips Bluray player capable to play any bluray region.Hence,I purposedly bought "The Matrix" as at the back cover of the case stated as a Region B.

Unless the movie is released by an independent distributor, most movies by Warner, Paramount and Universal WITHIN the specified region are REGION FREE; for example some movies distributed by Universal in the US but Sony in Region B areas so you need to check before you buy.

QUOTE

So it seem that it does'nt matter what the back cover stated about Region wether it is A,B or C...as long as it is stated in http://bluray.liesinc.net/index.php?region=b as a region free titled,so its safe enough to buy...correct ?

Most of the time, the list is correct. The site owner uses forums to check whether discs are region free.

The BDA does state that after one year of being out on Blu-ray Discs, subsequent re-pressings of region locked discs will be unlocked. No point in keeping the discs locked indefinitely after it's been out there for so long. However, if a new version is going to be released, that version may be locked while the original released remain unlocked.

Please advice the retailers for these brands... Initially looking for pioneer 330 or phillips 3100 but when tested with region B blu ray are not playable.

QUOTE

It not so harm as Malaysian is same region as American which is region A. Beside this, plenty of BD which is region Free.

I want to get region B titles from the UK which are much cheaper than those from the USA. Some more, some movie titles are only available in the UK.No problem watching the region A or region free titles on the good old PS3

Please be aware that Sony S370 only reads HDD formatted in FAT32 while the Samsung C5500 can also read NTFS formatted HDD so the Samsung is a better buy in this respect as you will not be limited to file size of 4GB. However, Samsung can only read MP4 files with .mp4 extension while the Sony can read those with .mp4, .mts and .m2ts file extensions; but if you change these files to .mp4, then the Samsung can read these files as well but a bit troublesome. I find the Samsung user interface more attrative than the Sony which is similar to that of the PS3 so PS3 users will be more at home with the Sony. There is no clear best buy as it depends on your usage and preference.

Please be aware that Sony S370 only reads HDD formatted in FAT32 while the Samsung C5500 can also read NTFS formatted HDD so the Samsung is a better buy in this respect as you will not be limited to file size of 4GB. However, Samsung can only read MP4 files with .mp4 extension while the Sony can read those with .mp4, .mts and .m2ts file extensions; but if you change these files to .mp4, then the Samsung can read these files as well but a bit troublesome. I find the Samsung user interface more attrative than the Sony which is similar to that of the PS3 so PS3 users will be more at home with the Sony. There is no clear best buy as it depends on your usage and preference.

I was at Best Denki in 1Utama yesterday and I saw 2 other BD player at RM399, the Philips 2700 and the LG BD550. Despite the Philips BDP2700 being a newer model than the BDP3100, I was surprised that though both support Dolby True HD, only BDP3100 supports DTS-HD Master Audio while the BDP2700 only has DTS 2.0+Digital Out so it is like moving backwards to me. So be careful when you are considering buying a Philips and make sure it is a 3100 and not 2700 or you will miss out on DTS-HD MAster Audio. The specs of the LG seems OK so maybe owners of this model and the Philips may want to share their experience here.

Surprisingly, Best Denki was selling both the Sony S370 and Samsung C5500 at RM899!!! The best prices elsewhere seems to be RM399 (for Samsung even RM350) so do look around since it is not worth paying so much more. With the money saved you can get a pretty good stand-alone HD Media Player which will be much better than the one built-into the BD Player. I agree with Andrew's assessment overall, I would also pick a Samsung over the Sony.

I was at Best Denki in 1Utama yesterday and I saw 2 other BD player at RM399, the Philips 2700 and the LG BD550. Despite the Philips BDP2700 being a newer model than the BDP3100, I was surprised that though both support Dolby True HD, only BDP3100 supports DTS-HD Master Audio while the BDP2700 only has DTS 2.0+Digital Out so it is like moving backwards to me. So be careful when you are considering buying a Philips and make sure it is a 3100 and not 2700 or you will miss out on DTS-HD MAster Audio. The specs of the LG seems OK so maybe owners of this model and the Philips may want to share their experience here.

Surprisingly, Best Denki was selling both the Sony S370 and Samsung C5500 at RM899!!! The best prices elsewhere seems to be RM399 (for Samsung even RM350) so do look around since it is not worth paying so much more. With the money saved you can get a pretty good stand-alone HD Media Player which will be much better than the one built-into the BD Player. I agree with Andrew's assessment overall, I would also pick a Samsung over the Sony.

yes, definitely agreed with you regarding Philips BD player. I nearly decide to go with philips 2700, luckily I inspected the spec thoroughly.

regarding sammy c5500, the following are the price findings while hunting for bd player last weekend:-

1. HLK - lowest price at RM350 (but i got luck, went to 3 HLK branches but got no stock)

The Philips BDP2700 can't decode DTS HDMA for LPCM delivery through HDMI; it will only decode the DTS 1.5Mbps stream. However, it will do bitstream delivery via HDMI. If you have a receiver with DTS HDMA decoding, not a problem.

Thanks, Fuad, for the clarification. Do you know the reason for this unusual arrangement of the Philips 2700? AFAIK, all new BD players (except the 2700 so far) will decode both the HD audios directly and also do bitstream according to the user settings; correct me if I am wrong.

Thanks again guys for all the explanation and spell out the difference btwn the players very clearly...

Last nite went hunting for the Samsung C5500, went Harvey Norman (Queensbay Mall) can't find it, went SENQ also to no avail....lastly went BHB (Ban Hin Bee) managed to find a few unit there, the salesperson offering me a promo price of RM405 but managed to get it down to RM399 cash payment.

So I guess it's still a good enough price.

Overall quite satisfied with the features and performance (PQ & AQ) but being Samsung, there's some rough part there esp when the loading / unloading CD tray is moving....pretty rough sounding (mechanically)...guess it's normal.

Thanks, Fuad, for the clarification. Do you know the reason for this unusual arrangement of the Philips 2700? AFAIK, all new BD players (except the 2700 so far) will decode both the HD audios directly and also do bitstream according to the user settings; correct me if I am wrong.

probably a licensing (royalty) issue with DTS so as to keep cost down.

Thanks again guys for all the explanation and spell out the difference btwn the players very clearly...

Last nite went hunting for the Samsung C5500, went Harvey Norman (Queensbay Mall) can't find it, went SENQ also to no avail....lastly went BHB (Ban Hin Bee) managed to find a few unit there, the salesperson offering me a promo price of RM405 but managed to get it down to RM399 cash payment.

So I guess it's still a good enough price.

Overall quite satisfied with the features and performance (PQ & AQ) but being Samsung, there's some rough part there esp when the loading / unloading CD tray is moving....pretty rough sounding (mechanically)...guess it's normal.

Ya kar aiyoh I was cheated d.....y did they not have standardised pricing for every salesperson at every outlet....or maybe that's the x'mas promo.....i was told RM405 was promo too but don't know wht promo la....Thaipusam promo maybe.

Ya kar aiyoh I was cheated d.....y did they not have standardised pricing for every salesperson at every outlet....or maybe that's the x'mas promo.....i was told RM405 was promo too but don't know wht promo la....Thaipusam promo maybe.

Not being cheat la, only extra RM49 different, it time to time price different depends on market demand + promotion might different on special holiday.

i'm using panasonic plasma s series...should i get the pana bd player or can i get other brand such as sony/samsung as this model are less expensive compare to pana.....any advise would be much appreciated...

i'm using panasonic plasma s series...should i get the pana bd player or can i get other brand such as sony/samsung as this model are less expensive compare to pana.....any advise would be much appreciated...

i'm using panasonic plasma s series...should i get the pana bd player or can i get other brand such as sony/samsung as this model are less expensive compare to pana.....any advise would be much appreciated...

If u buy a panay BDP then u can utilise Viera link; 1 remote to control TV & BDP. Whether this feature is worth the xtra $$$ is up to ur budget

Added on January 13, 2011, 9:26 am

QUOTE(ronaldkwok @ Jan 11 2011, 06:21 AM)

Thanks, Fuad, for the clarification. Do you know the reason for this unusual arrangement of the Philips 2700? AFAIK, all new BD players (except the 2700 so far) will decode both the HD audios directly and also do bitstream according to the user settings; correct me if I am wrong.

The 2000 series is suppose to be entry level BDP and to reduce the cost, some features r not included. Anyway the assumption is that target audience of entry level BDP might not have AVR to support lossless audio. For the price, u will do better to go for the 3100 (read somewhere that it is actually a sammy C series OEMed for philips, check the features whether it is C5500 )

If u buy a panay BDP then u can utilise Viera link; 1 remote to control TV & BDP. Whether this feature is worth the xtra $$$ is up to ur budget

The Viera Link is just Panasonic's moniker for HDMI 1.3a where when you turn on the BD player, you turn on the TV/receiver, that is if you had set it up that way. Some BD players have codes that allow you to control the TV as well but very basic commands. But really, you only need to use the TV for the volume and channel controls, which is what the codes are for. You use the TV's remote to do the main settings and calibration. After that, you hardly use any of the buttons - unless the TV also plays other media via USB/LAN.

QUOTE

Added on January 13, 2011, 9:26 am

The 2000 series is suppose to be entry level BDP and to reduce the cost, some features r not included. Anyway the assumption is that target audience of entry level BDP might not have AVR to support lossless audio. For the price, u will do better to go for the 3100 (read somewhere that it is actually a sammy C series OEMed for philips, check the features whether it is C5500 )

The assumption is wrong. It's 2011 now and 2010 entry level receivers already have lossless support. So it make sense to keep it cheap and let the receivers decode it.

As far as which unit decodes it better - player or receiver - that's up to the specific model. You can debate until you're out of breath but the main thing to remember is that if you can't increase your budget, then make the most out of the player/receiver models that's available.

As far as which unit decodes it better - player or receiver - that's up to the specific model. You can debate until you're out of breath but the main thing to remember is that if you can't increase your budget, then make the most out of the player/receiver models that's available.

The Viera Link is just Panasonic's moniker for HDMI 1.3a where when you turn on the BD player, you turn on the TV/receiver, that is if you had set it up that way. Some BD players have codes that allow you to control the TV as well but very basic commands. But really, you only need to use the TV for the volume and channel controls, which is what the codes are for. You use the TV's remote to do the main settings and calibration. After that, you hardly use any of the buttons - unless the TV also plays other media via USB/LAN.

Agree, and some brand is interchange each others ... example Sony & Samsung can share among each, which means the remote control might able to share even from different brand. If cannot, it is not so important at all also.

I have two set,

One is Samsung LA40C530 LCD TV & Sony BD-S370 player, both remote control is share each others and no configuration is needed at all.

Another set is Sony 32BX300 LCD TV & Samsung BD-C5500 player, both remote control also can share but I need to manual configure it.

** I do above combination as I want both having functionality of playback .MKV file and this only happen to Samsung brand.

In terms of the same criteria above, how would the LG550 compare with the Samsung C5500?

Check out my new thread on the LG BD550 for some quirks I found on my unit; not sure if is the same for other owners. As far as the PQ and AQ, appears similar to the Samsung BD5500. For overall functionality, I would pick the Samsung over the LG.

Agree, and some brand is interchange each others ... example Sony & Samsung can share among each, which means the remote control might able to share even from different brand. If cannot, it is not so important at all also.

I have two set,

One is Samsung LA40C530 LCD TV & Sony BD-S370 player, both remote control is share each others and no configuration is needed at all.

Another set is Sony 32BX300 LCD TV & Samsung BD-C5500 player, both remote control also can share but I need to manual configure it.

** I do above combination as I want both having functionality of playback .MKV file and this only happen to Samsung brand.

correct! samsung remote can control a basic command like (play/pause/rewind) for Sony BD.

Is this price for a new unit or a display set? If it is for a new set, then it is a damn good price for a BD player. Bear in mind that it is a 2009 model but if you just need it for playing BD/DVD/CD, it should be a good buy. I think all the sets must have been gone by now.

For those of you thinking of grabbing the Pana BD60 at RM169, don't bother going to Carrefour, Midvalley. I was there this morning and there was not a trace of this thing. The closest to it was a Pana BD45 that is a free gift for a Pana LCD TV. (Don't touch this model, as far as I know it is not BD Profile 2.0) The only BD player on sale there was the Philips BD2700 at RM389. What bro mpyw saw earlier was most probably a display/demo set for clearance.

All BD players can play BD, DVD and CD but most of them cannot play VCD so keep your DVD player to play VCD. Also most BD players available locally can play only region 3 DVD, unlike DVD players that are region free. At your price range, BD players can play only Region A BD. Most BD players have USB port but some support only FAT32 format; most can play divx files but to varying degrees so best to bring along your sample divx file to test and confirm. Check my BD Player Blog to get some general idea on BD players.

All BD players can play BD, DVD and CD but most of them cannot play VCD so keep your DVD player to play VCD. Also most BD players available locally can play only region 3 DVD, unlike DVD players that are region free. At your price range, BD players can play only Region A BD. Most BD players have USB port but some support only FAT32 format; most can play divx files but to varying degrees so best to bring along your sample divx file to test and confirm. Check my BD Player Blog to get some general idea on BD players.

All BD players can play BD, DVD and CD but most of them cannot play VCD so keep your DVD player to play VCD. Also most BD players available locally can play only region 3 DVD, unlike DVD players that are region free. At your price range, BD players can play only Region A BD. Most BD players have USB port but some support only FAT32 format; most can play divx files but to varying degrees so best to bring along your sample divx file to test and confirm. Check my BD Player Blog to get some general idea on BD players.

Can everybody list down where they buy their player, and at what price?

I tried visiting a few places before CNY but the only places with stock for the Samsung 5500 is Best Denki and Houz Depot, both selling at RM499.. some forumers mentioned HLK selling as low as RM350, but I was quoted RM450 by the Kota Damansara branch and they have run out of stock too..

Also interested in the Sony S370, anybody can recommend places around PJ with stock and good price?

I found an entry-level (i.e. cheap) BD player that specifically mention VCD as a supported disc format (all other entry-level BD players so far do not mention VCD as one of the playable disc types). This is the Philips BDP3100 and also the lesser BDP2700 (no DTS-HD MA support) if you really need this function. But frankly, after watching BD, who wants to go back to VCD? I suppose it is only good for children's educational VCD and some very obscure titles.

True, some BD players can playback VCD even though not mentioned in the specs but you probably do not get full control in terms of menu selection from enabling PBC (or playback control for those familiar with VCD). Some will just playback the whole VCD while some will reject the VCD outright. The Philips BD players that I mentioned have options to turn on VCD PBC (not found in other entry-level BD players, AFAIK) and thus have full menu control for track selection which is quite important for some educational and karaoke VCDs. If you favourite movie is not available in DVD or BD, then you have to bear watching it in VCD loh!